Lectures on the Pitāputrasamāgama Sūtra (160)

Is it real that the tongue root is broken in a dream?

Original text: King, as a person in a dream has the tongue root broken, what do you think? When this person awakens and recalls the dream, is it real or not? The king said, "No." The Buddha said, "King, this person clings to what was dreamed as real, is this a wise person?" The king said, "No, Bhagavan. Why? In a dream, after all, there is no tongue root, how much less it being broken. Should know that this person vainly labors, completely without reality."

Explanation: King, just like a person in a dream dreams that the tongue root is broken, what do you think? After this person awakens, he continuously recalls the things in his dream; are the things in the dream real? King Śuddhodana said, "It is not real, Bhagavan." The Buddha said, "King, this person clings to his dream as real, does he have wisdom?" King Śuddhodana replied, "He does not have wisdom, Bhagavan. Why so? Because in a dream, after all, there is no tongue root, how much more so the matter of it being broken. Should know that this person only vainly labors his mind, without any real thing."